


Million Dollar Bills

by buoyantsaturn



Series: Prompts [6]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan, The Trials of Apollo - Rick Riordan
Genre: Based on a Tumblr Post, F/M, Foster Care, Headcanon prompt, M/M, actor!will solace
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-01
Updated: 2018-05-01
Packaged: 2019-04-30 11:40:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,076
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14496180
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/buoyantsaturn/pseuds/buoyantsaturn
Summary: “His name is Will, he’s twenty-five, he’s very nice and very pretty, and we’re going out again soon. Now get your work done before Sally gets home.”it's a fic of this headcanon list!





	Million Dollar Bills

**Author's Note:**

> i'm so glad i finished this before my copy of the burning maze comes in the mail because we all know that no work is getting done until that book is finished  
> anyway i hope you enjoy!!

Nico had never remembered meeting his dad. He remembered growing up with his sister Bianca, being raised by their mother who loved them more than anything else in the world. They didn’t have much - lived in a one-bedroom apartment, always tight on money, Maria spent more time at work than she did at home - but they were happy. 

Then the corner store that Maria worked at was robbed, and Maria was shot and killed behind the register. Nico and Bianca, at home and asleep in the bed they shared with their mother, didn’t find out until the morning when CPS came to take them to a foster home where they would live until further notice. Bianca promised her brother that she would get a job as early as she could, she would make as much money as possible, and as soon as she turned eighteen, she would adopt Nico and they would live on their own. Nico dreamed of the day where he would be happy again, but happiness was still so far away.

Bianca had told him that she’d found a service that connected people with babysitters - she’d seen a sign on the side of the road somewhere and called the number - and he hadn’t seen her since. When the police came around asking questions about the missing girl - that was what they’d called her, not  _ Bianca, _ not  _ your sister, _ but  _ the missing girl _ \- Nico gave them the phone number, and they’d eventually discovered that it was connected to a trafficking ring. Nico hadn’t understood what that meant when he was ten, but he got the hint that he probably wouldn’t ever see his sister again.

He stayed in that same foster home, though other kids came and went. His foster mom, Sally, told him late one night after he’d had a nightmare that he was her favorite kid out of them all. “But you can’t tell anyone,” she’d said. “They’ll get jealous if they find out.”

“I’m even more your favorite than Percy?” Nico had asked, voiced still wobbly from when he’d been crying. 

Sally had hummed before saying, “Sometimes. But you can’t tell that to him, either.”

On Nico’s eighteenth birthday, he thought that Sally’s loving act might drop, and that she would kick him out of the house, but instead, she’d helped him pack up his things and move into Percy’s old room - he and Annabeth had just gotten their own apartment in the city, so he wouldn’t be needing it anymore. Nico was welcome to stay as long as he liked, as long as he promised to help around the house and keep an eye on the kids. It was the best birthday present he’d ever gotten.

For the next two years, he worked harder than he’d ever worked in his life. He enrolled at a community college, pursuing a social work degree, and got a second job to pay his tuition and save up to buy his own place. He moved out of Sally’s house when he was twenty-one, but still stopped by to help whenever he had the time, and of course, he would never miss out on Sunday family dinner.

 

The weather was starting to get colder, and a few of the kids had been wanting to go to the park all week, so Nico agreed to take them to the good playground across town on Saturday, as long as they did all their homework that week. 

There were six of them with him, so the buddy system worked out great for the walk there, but once they hit the playground the kids went running, and Nico was on his own to keep an eye on them all. 

The youngest of the kids he brought with him, Harley, had just joined the family about a month earlier, and while the other kids got along with him great and made sure to always include him, it was taking Nico a little while to get used to having him around. He certainly had a lot more energy than the other kids, so Nico figured he would be easy to keep an eye on. However, all that energy just meant that he moved around too fast for his eye to catch him, and he sneaked away from the playground without Nico noticing for a few moments. 

When he finally did realize that he was only counting five kids instead of six, Nico jumped off the bench he’d been sitting on and asked the other kids where Harley had run off to. When he didn’t get a definitive answer, he stepped back to scan the area, seconds away from calling out his name when Nico saw the little rascal talking to grown man about fifty feet away. 

“Harley!” Nico shouted before running over. He knelt down in front of the boy and put his hands on his shoulders. “You gotta sick with the group, dude, and the group is on the playground.”

“But I wanna climb that tree,” Harley started, pointing at a large oak a ways away from them, “and nobody would come with me so I was gonna go by myself.”

“But you can’t go off by yourself,” Nico told him.

Harley pointed up at the man he’d been talking to before Nico interrupted. “But he said--”

Nico raised an eyebrow up at the man, who held up his hands defensively. “Woah, all I said was that he should ask permission from his mom before--”

“But I don’t have a mom, so it’s okay--”

“Harley,” Nico cut in. “You don’t go off by yourself. You don’t get a free pass on the rules just because you don’t have a mom. And you don’t talk to strangers. Now go back to the playground before you get into more trouble than you’re already in.”

Harley nodded and hung his head before turning back to the playground, dragging his feet as he went. 

Nico brushed off the knees of his jeans as he stood up, and finally got a good look at the man standing beside him. He was tan and blond and freckled with eyes so blue that Nico thought he was seeing straight through his head and into the sky. He was  _ gorgeous, _ with a beautiful sheepish smile that was aimed right at Nico, and he was sure his heart stopped for a second at the sight, and was only started again at the sound of his voice.

“Um, sorry, I was just trying to make sure he wasn’t running away,” the man said, glancing away from Nico and rubbing awkwardly at the back of his neck. “I guess I shouldn’t have told him to go back to his mom, though. I, uh, I didn’t know, obviously, but still. Sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Nico said, hoping his voice didn’t squeak. “There was no way to know, it’s fine.”

“Are you, um,” the man hesitated. “Is he your kid?”

“Yeah,” Nico answered immediately, then hurried to backtrack. “I mean, no, he’s not  _ mine, _ but he’s here with me. He’s a foster kid. I’m, uh, his babysitter, I guess?”

“You guess?” the man repeated with a friendly smile.

“He’s more like a foster brother. Not that I’m in foster care, I’m too old to be in foster care, I’m twenty-two. But I look after them. Sometimes. Actually, all six of those kids over there are mine. Not  _ mine, _ but--”

“Yours to look after,” the man finished for him, and Nico smiled up at him. “I’m Will, by the way.”

“Nico,” he replied, and threw a thumb over his shoulder to point out the bench he’d been sitting on before. “I should really get back to watching them, but would you, uh, maybe wanna come sit with me?”

Will looked pleasantly surprised, his smile lighting up even more. If he smiled any brighter, Nico was sure it would cause blindness. “Yeah, I’d love to.”

They made their way to the bench that Nico had been sitting on, leaving a polite amount of space between them when they sat. 

“So,” Will started, turning so that his entire body was facing Nico. “Is there any reason that you decided to start volunteering at a foster home?”

Nico hesitated. He didn’t exactly want to spill his entire life story to this stranger, so what could he say instead? “I just got a degree in social work,” he said, which at least wasn’t a lie, even if it wasn’t the whole truth. “I was helping out before I graduated, and I guess I just never wanted to stop.”

Will nodded in understanding. “I always wanted to go to college, but I never had the time. There was always, uh, too much work to do, and I don’t even know what I would have studied anyway.”

For a few seconds, there was silence between them, and Nico heard Annabeth’s voice in his head, telling him to put himself out there and ask somebody on a date - he could only imagine the look on her face when she found out he was dating someone as hot as Will.

“Would you, um, maybe like to get a coffee with me sometime?” Nico asked.

Will looked at him with surprise clear on his face, and Nico wanted to shrink down in his seat.

“Sorry, I was probably reading this wrong, uh, forget I asked--”

“No!” Will exclaimed, holding his hands out to Nico. “I mean, yes! I mean-- No, you weren’t reading this wrong, and yeah, I  _ really _ want to get coffee. With you, specifically. I’m sorry, it’s been a while since somebody’s asked me on a date-- This is a date, right?”

“That’s, yeah, that’s what I was hoping for,” Nico said. “So, that’s a yes?”

“Yeah,” Will said softly, smiling at Nico, before suddenly squirming to pull his phone out of his pocket. “Can I get your phone number?”

Nico grinned and took Will’s phone, typing in his name and number before handing it back when it suddenly started buzzing in his hand, signalling an incoming call.

Will sighed when he took the phone. “I’m sorry, I have to take this. I’ll text you later, okay?”

“Oh, yeah, okay,” Nico said, and Will smiled apologetically before he stood up and walked away, answering the call as he went.

“Nico!” one of the kids shouted, drawing his attention back to the playground. “I’m hungry, can we go home?”

Nico pushed himself up off the bench as a few of the kids ran over to him.

“Who was that guy?” one asked, and another said, “He looked really familiar, do we know him?”

Nico ignored them, calling over to the playground instead to get the rest of the kids to gather up so that they could head home. They continued to bug him about Will all the way back to the house, until Nico finally said, “His name is Will and we might go on a date sometime soon. Is that enough information for you?”

 

* * *

 

Nico wasn’t sure what exactly Will did for work, but it certainly kept him busy. It was almost two weeks before their schedules matched up and they could finally meet for coffee, but they filled the time in between texting almost every day.

Nico was the first to get to the coffee shop, so he waited outside until Will walked up, wearing a jacket and scarf with a hat and sunglasses, though the weather certainly didn’t call for it - the jacket maybe, but it wasn’t  _ that _ cold out yet. Will smiled at him when he walked up and opened the door for Nico to walk inside. Will paid for their drinks, even though Nico told him that he didn’t need to, but Will insisted. He also led Nico to the back corner of the shop, saying that it would be quieter back there away from all the other people, and it wasn’t until they were sitting down that Will finally removed his hat and scarf.

“You really didn’t have to pay for my drink,” Nico said again once they were seated and comfortable.

“I really did,” Will told him with that same bright and beautiful smile he’d had the last time Nico saw him. 

“But  _ I  _ asked  _ you _ out, which means that  _ I _ should be the one that buys the drinks.”

“There’s no use arguing when we already have them.”

Nico rolled his eyes. “Fine. But I’m paying next time.”

Will leaned forward, resting his chin on his hand. “Already planning for next time, huh? Where are you taking me? Or is it a surprise?”

Nico tried to hide the blush rising on his cheeks by taking a sip of his drink. “It’s less a plan and more a suggestion. If you’re up for a second date, that is.”

“Well, let’s see how this first one goes, and we’ll figure it out from there.” Will tapped a finger against his lips in a classic thinking pose as he stared at Nico intently. “What kinds of things to people talk about on first dates?”

Nico cracked a smile. “You say that like you’ve never been on a date in your life.”

“I told you, it’s been a little while,” Will reminded him. “What do you do for fun? Do you have, like, a favorite TV show that you watch in your free time, or something?”

Nico shrugged. “Honestly? I don’t watch a lot of TV, and I, uh, don’t usually  _ have _ free time, between working and going to Sally’s - that’s the foster home that I help at - so I’m sort of spending my only free time here with you right now. Not that I mind, I mean, this seems like it’s a pretty good use of my time--” Nico cut off his own rambling with a groan, hiding his face in his hands. “I’m sorry, I talk a lot when I’m nervous, I’ll shut up.”

“Am I making you nervous?” Will asked, trying to dim the smile on his face, but he couldn’t help it when the boy across from him was acting so cute. He was feeling a lot more confident now that he was sure that Nico didn’t recognize him. “What’s there to be nervous about? I’m just a guy.”

“A very pretty guy and you’re staring at me, and it’s making me nervous,” Nico said.

“Alright, so I won’t stare at you.” Will took out his phone and started scrolling through Twitter. “Is this better?”

“Well you don’t have to be an ass about it,” Nico laughed, kicking Will softly under the table.

Will caught Nico’s foot between his as he set his phone down on the table. “Then I guess I’ll just have to look at you. So you think I’m pretty? Let’s talk about that.”

“Oh, God, let’s not.”

 

Will had to leave abruptly after another important phone call - something for work, he’d told Nico - and they’d parted ways after Will pressed a kiss to Nico’s cheek and suggested meeting for dinner on their second date. 

Nico walked to Sally’s with a smile on his face that even all the pestering he got from the kids once he’d arrived couldn’t remove. They knew he’d gone on a date which was why he was late to help them with their homework, but they refused to let the subject drop, no matter how often Nico brushed the questions off. 

“If I tell you about it, then will you all shut up and focus on your homework?” he said finally, and received a chorus of cheers. “His name is Will, he’s twenty-five, he’s very nice and very pretty, and we’re going out again soon. Now get your work done before Sally gets home.”

 

* * *

 

Nico got a text from Will one afternoon saying that they had a dinner reservation at a fancy restaurant in the city. Nico knew just from the name of the place that it was going to be far more expensive than he could afford, and he was afraid that he would be underdressed in even his nicest clothes.

Nico texted back,  _ are you serious?? _

Will’s response was immediate:  _ Yes? Why, is that a problem? _

Yes, that place was way out of Nico’s price range. Yes, the nicest thing he owned was a pair of cufflinks that Sally had gotten him when he graduated college, but he wasn’t even sure that he had a button-down shirt to wear them with. Yes, that place was for Valentine’s Day dinners or twentieth wedding anniversaries, not  _ sixth dates after two months of dating. _

Instead, Nico replied,  _ nope, all good. see you then. _

And then he shot off a text to Percy asking if he had any nice clothes from high school that didn’t fit him anymore. He got an answer about an hour later, just before he left the adoption agency he worked at, telling him to stop by after work and they could look through Percy’s clothes.

He took the subway to Percy and Annabeth’s apartment and waited to get buzzed into the lobby before taking the elevator up to their floor. He liked visiting them, partially because their building had an elevator and his didn’t, but also because he liked hanging out with Annabeth. And Percy, too, sometimes. 

Annabeth hugged him when she let him into the apartment, and told him that Percy was in the bedroom digging through boxes. 

“Hey, man,” Percy greeted when Nico walked into the room. There were a few boxes on the floor of the room and Percy was pulling one more off the shelf in the closet. “I think my old clothes are in this box here, but if they’re not then they’re back at mom’s house, so you’ll have to look there. What do you need ‘em for, anyway?”

Nico sighed, stuffing his hands in the pockets of his jacket. “I have a date.”

“Holy shit,  _ what?” _ Percy exclaimed, dropping the last box on his foot. “Ow! Damn, alright, say that again?”

Nico rolled his eyes. “I said I have a date.”

“Annabeth!” Percy called, and Nico flopped down on the bed in exasperation. “Nico’s got a date!”

“Really? Nice going, Neeks!” Annabeth called back from somewhere else in the apartment.

Nico heard Percy crack open the box, and then there was fabric covering his face. He pulled it back to see a plain white dress shirt, and when he sat up, he saw Percy pulling a few more articles of clothing out of the box. 

“Looks like I’ve got three shirts, two pairs of slacks, and a sport coat,” Percy told him, holding the clothes out for him to take. “And a really ugly tie, and I’m gonna do you a favor and not give that one to you. But the rest you can keep, if it fits you.”

“Thanks,” Nico said. “I’m gonna go try this stuff on.” He left the room, walking across the hall to the bathroom and shutting the door behind himself. He was surprised to see that everything fit him, though he sort of felt like an idiot in such nice clothes, and stepped out of the bathroom to get a second opinion - from Annabeth, not from Percy. 

“Hey, you look great!” Percy said. “I’m surprised that stuff fits you, since I think I wore it for my eighth grade graduation.”

Annabeth came up behind him and elbowed him in the side. “Percy, you wore that when you took me to the Homecoming dance sophomore year. Don’t be a jerk. You look very nice, Nico. Where’s this date happening that you have to get so dressed up?”

Nico ducked his head and crossed his arms as he muttered, “The Apollo.”

_ “What?” _ the two shouted simultaneously. 

“Did you say  _ The Apollo?” _ Annabeth asked. “For a  _ first date?  _ Where the hell did you get that kind of money?”

“Sixth date,” Nico corrected. “And he’s paying. I hope he is, at least, because I certainly can’t afford that.”

“Sixth date, and we’re just now hearing about this?” Percy said. “C’mon, Neeks, we’re family! You tell family about your dates! You didn’t even mention it at dinner at mom’s house on Sunday. Tell us about him, what’s he like?”

Nico rolled his eyes. “He’s tall, blond. Really pretty. He’s nice too, but he always insists on paying for everything. And I guess that’s kind of nice, but he won’t even let me buy him coffee.”

“Did you put out?” Percy asked, and Annabeth elbowed him again, harder this time. “Ow! What? If he keeps paying for dates, then he’s probably expecting sex! I’m a guy, I know how guys think!”

“No, Percy, I didn’t sleep with him, but…” Nico hesitated, taking a breath before saying, “What if that’s what he expects after tonight, and that’s why he’s taking me to such an expensive place? I like him,  _ a lot, _ but I don’t know--”

Annabeth set a comforting hand on his shoulder. “Nico, you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do. If he’s really such a great guy, then he’ll understand. And you’re probably just overthinking things, anyway. You said it’s your sixth date, right? That might not even be on his mind yet.”

“Oh, it is,” Percy said.

“Seriously, Percy?” Annabeth snapped. She sighed before turning back to Nico and saying, “Anyway. You’re gonna need a little something more for The Apollo. A tie, obviously, and I’m sure you have a nice pair of shoes?”

“Yeah, I think so, but I don’t know about a tie.”

“You can borrow one of Percy’s. Percy?” she said, and nodded toward their bedroom, and Percy left to find a tie. “What else? What about a nice watch? That’s a good accessory for a guy.”

“I don’t have any watches either. I have cufflinks.”

“Yes! Wear those, and you should brush your hair, too.”

Percy came back with a plain black tie and handed it to Nico, who tied it loosely around his neck. “Well?”

“You look great,” Annabeth told him.

“Yeah, man, you’ll fit right in with all those rich old men,” Percy added. “You better tell us how it went after, now that you’ve finally let us in on your little secret.”

“Sure, whatever,” Nico said, rolling his eyes. “I’m gonna go change.” He went back into the bathroom and changed back into the clothes he’d worn there, then folded up the dress clothes to take with him. “Thanks again,” he said when he left the bathroom. “I’ve gotta head out, though, so I’ll see you on Sunday.”

Annabeth’s voice stopped him once he reached the door: “Hey, you never told us his name.”

“It’s Will,” Nico called back into the apartment. “Will Solace.”

“Wait,  _ what?” _ both of them shouted, but Nico walked out the door before they could stop him again.

 

His dinner with Will was on Friday night, three days later, and he felt just as stupid in the fancy clothes as he had the first time he put them on. It took him about ten minutes to figure out how to put the cufflinks on, and felt even dumber when he remembered that the cufflinks were little silver skulls instead of something...normal.

Will buzzed into the lobby, and Nico told him he would be right down, then almost ran out of his apartment without a coat. He flew down the three flights of stairs and almost tripped when he saw Will waiting by the door - he was wearing a cool grey suit with a dark blue tie, and when Will smiled at him from across the room, Nico was almost floored at the sight.  _ God, _ his boyfriend was  _ so hot. _

“Hey, Babe,” Will greeted, walking up to him and slipping an arm around his waist to pull him into a kiss. “You look beautiful.”

Nico rolled his eyes and smiled up at him. “Says you.”

“What would you say if I suggested we stay in and order takeout instead of going to dinner?” Will asked, resting his forehead against Nico’s.

“You’re not serious,” Nico said with a pout. “I got  _ all dressed up--” _

“I’m kidding!” Will said. “C’mon, I got a car for tonight and everything.”

Will pulled back but kept his arm around Nico’s waist and led him out the front door of the building, to the car he’d parked on the curb. 

“This is the car you rented?” Nico asked, frozen even as Will opened the passenger’s side door for him to get in. He wasn’t good with cars, so he didn’t know what it was exactly, but he knew it was expensive as  _ hell.  _ He didn’t even know you  _ could  _ rent something like that.

Will winced. “It’s overkill, isn’t it? I knew I shouldn’t have gone with this one, but I asked my dad and he insisted on it, probably just because it’s his favorite model. Are you gonna get in?”

Nico unstuck his feet from the ground and sat down on the expensive leather seats as Will shut his door behind him. In seconds, Will was in the driver’s seat, and then they were off to dinner. It was a short drive - it should’ve been longer, but Nico had a feeling that Will was enjoying speeding down the back roads until they reached the city - and Will kept one of his hands entwined with Nico’s as he drove. 

Will left the car to the valet when they arrived at the restaurant, and didn’t even have to say his name to the hostess when they walked in - did he come here so often that he was recognized on sight? They were taken to a table in the back of the restaurant, away from most of the other couples dining there, meaning that they had plenty of privacy while for their date.

Nico cracked open the menu and immediately said goodbye to his grocery budget for the rest of the month. The cheapest appetizer he could find was twenty dollars, and he was afraid to turn the page because he knew that the prices would make him feel sick to his stomach just  _ looking _ at them. 

“Is something wrong?” Will asked, gazing at Nico with concern in his eyes. 

“It’s…” Nico started before setting the menu down. “Everything is awfully expensive.”

Will visibly relaxed and smiled. “Don’t worry about the price, I’ll take care of it.” When Nico’s expression didn’t change, Will reached across the table and took Nico’s hand as he said, “Nico, c’mon. Tell me what’s bothering you.”

“I don’t understand how you can afford this,” Nico said. “One meal here costs more than I usually spend on groceries for a month.”

Will pulled Nico’s hand up and pressed a kiss to his knuckles. “Try not to think about it, Babe, just let me treat you to a nice dinner.”

Nico pulled his hand out of Will’s grip. “I don’t think you  _ get it, _ Will. Would you just tell me how you can possibly afford to blow a hundred dollars on a single meal?”

Will looked hurt, like a kid who had dropped their ice cream, or like a puppy that Nico had just kicked, and he slouched back in his chair. “It’s...family money.”

Family money.  _ Family money? _ So Will was just like those spoiled rich kids that went to Nico’s high school who had always made fun of him for being an orphan. If Will ever found out about Nico’s past-- God, Percy was right. Will probably just wanted to sleep with him, and then if Nico ever wanted to see him again, he’d have to pay a million dollars just to have dinner with him.

“I need to tell you something,” Nico said suddenly, leaning forward so that his elbows were on the table, though he didn’t look at Will. He stared at the candle between them as he said, “I don’t have...family money. I don’t have a  _ family. _ Or, I do, I guess, because I have my foster family, but I don’t--” He took a breath, hiding his face in his hands. “My family is dead. I spend so much time with foster kids because I was a foster kid, and I want them to have a better childhood than I had. I don’t even own clothes nice enough to be let inside a place like this - I had to ask for hand-me-downs from my foster brother.

“Just the thought of spending money like this makes me uncomfortable. I don’t know if you have some kind of ulterior motive, like you throwing your money around will get me to put out or something, but that’s not going to happen--” Nico took a breath, finally realizing how loud he’d been speaking, and started rapidly tapping his fingers on the edge of the table anxiously. “Sorry. I think I should go, maybe.” He stood up to leave, but Will jumped out of his seat after him.

“Woah, wait, hang on,” Will said, catching Nico’s wrist with one hand and cupping his cheek with the other. “You can’t just...throw your entire life story at me and then walk away, that’s not how this works. Sit back down and give me a chance to respond, okay?”

Nico nodded and Will darted forward to press a kiss to his forehead.

“Thank you,” Will said, and they returned to their seats. “Alright, uh. I’m not even sure where to start. Did you think that I would care that you don’t really have a family, that I would like you less because I wouldn’t have to have that awkward meeting-the-parents dinner? I mean, I care, but in the sense that I care about  _ you, _ not about, like, what’s being given to you in somebody’s last will and testament. I don’t care whether you have money or not, do you really think I’m that shallow? And, while we’re on that, I don’t want to have sex with you!”

Nico raised an eyebrow as he watched the realization set in on Will’s face, which was slowly growing redder as the seconds passed - and Nico was certain that their audience of nearby diners was paying very close attention to their table.

“Hold on. That’s not what I meant,” Will said calmly after a short moment, and Nico snorted. “I want to-- Of  _ course _ I want to have sex with you, but-- Wait, let me figure out how to word this-- We haven’t known each other that long. We shouldn’t have sex until we get to know each other better, but that wasn’t the point of this!”

Nico bit his lip to try and keep his laughter from spilling out of his mouth, but it wasn’t working. If  _ he’d _ felt embarrassed by his little outburst earlier, then he had  _ no idea _ how Will was feeling - his face was nearly as red as a tomato at this point.

“The point,” Will said, leaning forward with his arms on the table.  _ “The point _ is that I’m not buying you dinner to have sex with you. I’m buying you dinner because I  _ want to _ and because I want to  _ get to know you. _ I wanted to do something special, because you  _ deserve  _ special, and I thought that a nice dinner would be the way to express that to you, to let you know that I  _ really _ like you, and that I really care about you, and--” Will groaned, and this time it was him who hid his face in his hands. “God, I’m never gonna be allowed in this restaurant again.”

Nico couldn’t hold back his laughter any longer, falling back against his chair and laughing louder than what was considered polite, especially in a place as fancy as The Apollo.

Once he had his breathing under control again, Nico leaned forward and pulled Will’s hands away from his face. “Does that offer of takeout in my apartment still stand?”

_ “Please.” _

 

Will drove them back to Nico’s apartment while Nico called for a pizza, which arrived at Nico’s building just moments after they did.

Will seemed unimpressed by Nico’s apartment, which was to be expected considering the only things visible from the front door were a couch, TV, microwave, and refrigerator. 

“Make yourself at home,” Nico told him as he set the box of pizza on the tiny table in front of the couch.

“This is where you live?” Will asked, like Nico was pulling some kind of prank. Like he’d suddenly shout  _ Gotcha! _ and press a button that would magically transform the dump he lived in to a luxury apartment.

“Yes, and don’t give me that look,” Nico said. “I didn’t tell you my tragic backstory so that you could pity me, alright? Now, give me a hand with these cufflinks, they’re a pain in the ass.”

The pitying look on Will’s face faded into a smile as he stepped closer and removed the cufflinks from Nico’s sleeves. “Are these skulls?” he asked, holding one up for closer examination before Nico plucked it out of his hand.

“They were a graduation present,” Nico told him. 

“That’s adorable,” Will said. “I didn’t know you could get skull-shaped cufflinks.”

Nico rolled his eyes. “I’ll buy you some when I win the lottery. Go ahead and start eating, I’m going to change real quick.”

“But I thought this was going to be a fancy pizza dinner.”

“This is the only nice shirt I own, I’m not going to risk getting pizza sauce on it. I’ll just be a minute,” Nico said before walking through one of the two doors off the main room - the other was the bathroom - and he hurriedly changed out of his dress clothes and into the first things he could find. Which happened to be the sweatpants and t-shirt he’d worn to sleep the night before, so that would have to do.

Will was sitting on the couch when Nico left his room, looking at something on his phone with the box of pizza still closed in front of him. 

“I told you to start without me,” Nico said, going over to the fridge for a drink. “You want a drink? I’ve got Coke, tap water, and--” he reached around the side of the fridge and pulled a glass jug off the ground, “--about half a gallon of Captain Morgan.”

“Coke, please,” Will said, so Nico grabbed two out of the fridge before walking over to the couch. He tucked himself into Will’s side when he sat down, cracking open the can in his hand and taking a sip immediately. “Comfy?”

Nico kicked his feet up onto the table, next to the still unopened box of pizza. “Yeah, I am. Aren’t you gonna eat?”

“There aren’t any plates,” Will said, and Nico rolled his eyes.

“We don’t need plates, it’s pizza.” He leaned forward and grabbed the box, setting it on their laps and flipping it open before grabbing a slice. “Tell me something.”

“Like what?” Will asked as he took his own slice.

“I dunno, anything. You found out a whole lot about me tonight, so now it’s your turn to spill.”

Will sighed as he thought of something to say. “Well, I just found out that you look good in literally anything. Is that what you were looking for?”

“What? No.”

“I think it’s pretty important, personally. I mean, one minute you’re in a suit and you look hot as hell, and then the next, you’re in sweats and you  _ still _ look hot--”

“That’s not what I meant, and you know it,” Nico cut in. “Tell me something about  _ you _ that has  _ nothing to do _ with me.”

Will rolled his eyes. He shifted away from Nico slightly - though he just sunk further into Will’s side as he moved - and pulled his arm out from between them to rest over Nico’s shoulders. “Alright, this has a little bit to do with you, but you can’t get mad about this one.”

“We’ll see.”

“I think it’s amazing how much of your time you’re able to devote to helping out foster kids.”

“It’s also kind of my job, Will.”

“Yeah, I get that, but even outside of work. You’re always helping out your foster family, and I just wish that I could help people more. I feel like I never have any time for it, and I guess I’m not even sure where to start.”

“Well, you’re making time for me,” Nico reminded him. “Maybe instead of planning extravagantly expensive dates, you could come over after work one day and help the kids with their homework. They always need help with biology, and I don’t know shit about biology, but if you do, then I’m sure they’d appreciate it. And you’d be spending time with me, too, which  _ I _ would appreciate, and we both know that’s more important.”

“Of course,” Will agreed, pressing a kiss to the side of Nico’s head.

“You don’t have to,” Nico said softly, “but then you could meet my family, and I’d really like it if you did. They’ll all love you, I’m sure of it, even if some of the kids will be a little shy at first, but Harley will remember you right away, and--”

“You don’t have to try to convince me, Babe,” Will said. “I’d love to.”

 

* * *

 

Will’s work had started picking up, so Nico was seeing him less and less as the days went on. He’d never gotten the chance to stop by Sally’s house to meet everyone, either, but Nico knew it wasn’t intentional. He was busy, and Nico understood that - whatever his dad’s business was, it certainly seemed to wear him down if his tired voice during late-night phone calls was any indication.

Nico had given Will Sally’s address over a month ago when he’d first invited him over, and Will felt terrible for constantly blowing him off, but his show had started filming its next season - it wasn’t like Will could just  _ not _ show up to shoots. He felt even worse for lying, though. Nico deserved all the happiness in the  _ world, _ but how was Will supposed to give him that when he was constantly lying about where he was every day? After nearly four months, it was time for Will to finally come clean.

He was let off set after a long morning of filming, being expected to rest before he returned to shoot the nighttime scenes, so Will put Sally’s address into his phone and drove away. 

He stopped at a Starbucks on his way, ordering two large cups of hot chocolate, before continuing on his way. He wasn’t sure when exactly Nico would arrive, so he needed something to keep him warm while he waited - the second drink was for Nico.

The sun was out that day, and the snow had been brushed off the steps leading up to Sally’s house, so Will decided to wait outside on the steps. It wasn’t long before a group of high school-age kids came walking down the block, so Will ducked his head in the hopes that he wouldn’t be recognized - unluckily for him, the kids happened to be Sally’s, and easily noticed him sitting on the steps.

“Oh my God,” a girl said when the group stopped directly in front of Will. “You’re Will Solace. What are you doing here?”

_ “No way,”  _ one of the boys said. “Are you the Will that Nico’s been dating?”

“Um, yeah, I am,” Will answered, hoping that they might leave him alone after that, but of course, they never did.

The group erupted in a sudden onslaught of questions and exclamations, so much so fast that Will could barely understand a single word.

“Hey, don’t you have something better to do then pester my boyfriend?” Nico’s voice came suddenly from behind the group, and Will felt himself relax instantly. “Get inside and get started on your homework.”

“Yes,  _ mom,” _ one of them groaned, and they all went inside.

Nico dropped onto the step next to Will and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Hey, Sunshine, I’m glad you could finally make it.”

“Me too,” Will said, and handed Nico one of the drinks in his hands. “They’re, uh, very energetic.”

Nico rolled his eyes and smiled as he set his drink on the step in front of him. “Yeah, they get like that sometimes - the younger ones are even worse. What were they bothering you about, anyway? I wouldn’t tell them very much about you, so they were probably fishing for information, right?”

Will bit his lip and averted his gaze down to the takeout cup in his hands. “Actually, that’s what I came here to talk about.”

The smile slipped off of Nico’s face, and he felt his heart stop. Why did Will sound so upset? Why did he look so uncomfortable, like he’d rather be anywhere else? Nico slumped forward, elbows on his knees and head in his hands. He sighed before saying, “Alright. If you’re breaking up with me, just hurry up and say it.”

“Woah, what?” Will exclaimed, and the cup slipped out of his hands, spilling his hot chocolate on the steps. “Shit,” he whispered, and hurried to pick up the cup, but it had already been emptied. “Nico, no, that’s not what I was gonna say, I promise. I came here because… Well, there’s something I need to tell you. I, uh, I haven’t been completely honest with you.”

Nico straightened up, glancing at Will with a fearful look. If it wasn’t a breakup, then what could make Will look like that? What could he have lied about that made him look so afraid to finally tell the truth?

Will took a moment to gather his thoughts before taking a deep breath. “I mean, I guess it wasn’t a total lie. My dad was in the business, and I followed in his footsteps, so  _ technically _ you could say it’s a  _ family business, _ but--”

“Will.”

“I’m an actor,” Will said. “And so’s my dad. I started in high school, and by the time I graduated, I was being called in for auditions for all sorts of parts, and I realized that I wouldn’t have the time to go to college if I wanted to keep acting. I’m on a hospital drama now, that’s what the kids were bothering me about - they recognized me from the show, I guess.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you this from the beginning, but it’s been so long since somebody treated me like a normal person. You saw how they were--” he gestured behind him to the door of Sally’s house, “--they were practically screaming in my face, and I don’t know what would have happened if you didn’t show up right then.”

“It’s not like they would have attacked you or something,” Nico said to his shoes.

“No, no, of course not,” Will said. “I just don’t do so well with people crowding around and shouting at me. I probably would’ve panicked and ran, but thanks to you, I’m fine. I… I’m so sorry that I never told you. I didn’t want you to find out from someone else before you heard it from me, and I don’t want you to think that I’m ignoring you because I’ve been so busy lately. We started filming again last week, and it usually takes a few months at least to finish filming a season, and then I get shoved into a ton of interviews, and--” 

Will sighed, running a hand through his hair. “I just don’t want you to be mad at me. I was so afraid that I was gonna mess this whole thing up because I didn’t tell you that I’m famous, but then I realized that I could mess it all up because I  _ did _ tell you-- Hang on, I think I got that twisted up, now I’m just confusing myself. What I’m trying to say is that I’m sorry, and please don’t break up with me, because I think I might maybe be in love with you.”

Nico’s head snapped toward Will, his eyes wide and his mouth hanging open.  _ Did he just say…? _

“Nico?” Will asked, looking at him fearfully.

He darted forward and pressed his lips to Will’s, his heart pounding in his chest. 

When Nico pulled back, Will’s expression was dripping with shock. Nico reached up and brushed his fingers across Will’s cheek as he asked, “Are you free for dinner on Sunday?”

 

* * *

 

The table was set and the kids were starting to take their seats, but Will still hadn’t arrived. Nico was fidgeting like crazy, checking his phone every thirty seconds to see if he’d somehow missed a text from Will, and Annabeth was starting to shoot him concerned looks from across the dining room.

Sally had forced him to take a seat, though he jumped right up again the second he heard a knock at the door. He ran out of the room, throwing the front door open and smiling when he saw Will on the other side.

He stepped into the house, cupping Nico’s cheeks with his icy cold fingers, and pressed a kiss to his lips. “Sorry I’m late, Babe.”

“Actually, you’re just in time,” Nico told him, and dragged him into the dining room. “Hey, everyone, this is my boyfriend, Will.”

A few of the older kids started calling out for Will’s attention, but Sally silenced them quickly. “Alright, there won’t be any of that,” she said. “Leave him alone, Will is just a normal person like everybody else here.”

The kids settled down, and Will and Nico made their way over to the two empty seats, but Percy stood up and stopped them before they could sit.

He held his hand out for Will to shake. “Hey, I’m Percy. Big fan, dude, but if you break Nico’s heart, I don’t care how famous you are, I  _ will _ kill you.”

Will suddenly wished he hadn’t taken Percy’s hand, because now no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t pull away. “Um.”

“He’s kidding. Mostly,” Annabeth said, setting a hand on Percy’s shoulder, and he released Will’s hand. “I’m Annabeth, it’s nice to meet you.”

Once Will and Nico were finally able to sit, Nico reached over and laced his fingers with Will’s while they waited for the dishes of food to be passed around the table. 

“Will,” Sally said suddenly from the head of the table. “I know that almost everyone here knows plenty about you already, but tonight, you’re not here as an actor but as Nico’s boyfriend. So, please, tell me about yourself.”

Will seemed surprised by the question - Nico figured he probably hadn’t been asked that question since his first big role.

“Oh. Well, um. I’m an actor,” Will started nervously, “but, uh, you just said that, so obviously you already know that. Um. I’m not really sure how to answer.”

Sally leaned her elbows on the table, folding her hands in front of her face. “Alright. Then I hope you’re prepared to tell me what your intentions are with my son.” It was clear to Will where Percy had gotten his intimidation tactics, but Will actually felt himself relax - he actually knew the answer to this one already.

A few of the kids started to snicker as Nico hid his face in his free hand with a groan. “Sally, please.”

“No, it’s fine, Babe, I can handle this one,” Will said to Nico, then turned back to Sally. “I intend to spoil him and give him anything he’s ever wanted, because he deserves more than I could ever offer.”

“Aw, good answer, man!” Percy said, leaning around Annabeth and shooting him a thumbs up. Will turned to Sally and saw her smiling, and Nico squeezed his hand under the table. He’d passed the test, it seemed, just as a large bowl of mashed potatoes made it around the table to him. Will figured it had worked out that way on purpose - if he’d answered incorrectly, he would’ve been kicked out before ever dirtying a dish.

“Alright, that’s enough interrogation,” Sally said. “It’s time to go around and share the highlight of your week. Harley, you’re first, and we’ll go around the table.”

Will leaned down to whisper in Nico’s ear: “Highlight of the week?”

“The best thing that happened to you over this past week,” Nico explained. “Or one of the best things. You can skip, if you don’t want to share when it gets around to you.”

“Oh, but I’m absolutely going to share,” Will said, and pressed a kiss to Nico’s forehead.

“No PDA at the dinner table, Will,” Sally said, and Will leaned away from his boyfriend quickly.

“Sorry, I didn’t know,” Will said, and pouted at Nico for not telling him that rule earlier. Nico grinned up at him and squeezed his hand under the table.

After dinner, Nico snuck away to the kitchen to help Sally put away the leftovers and get started on the dishes while Will found himself roped into conversation with the teenagers in the house.

“I don’t believe I heard the highlight of your week, Nico,” Sally said as she turned on the faucet.

“That’s because I didn’t say it,” Nico said, reorganizing a few things in the fridge so that there was space for all the tupperware he’d just stuffed full of food.

“Aren’t you going to tell me?” Sally prompted, and once Nico shut the fridge, he made his way over to the sink to start drying the washed dishes. 

Nico paused, letting the memory warm him down to the bone and feeling a smile grow slowly across his lips. “He told me he loves me.”

Sally bumped him with her hip. “I could’ve told you that,” she said, and then her voice softened when she said, “I’m happy for you, Nico. I’m glad you’re finally happy.”

“I’ve been happy,” Nico said. “I was happy when I lived here, I’ve been happy for a long time.”

“You were...comfortable. Content. That’s different than what I mean,” Sally tried to explain. “I never saw you this happy when you were still here. He’s good for you, Nico. I’m glad you’ve got him.”

“Yeah, me too.”

“So?”

“So, what?”

“You said he loves you,” Sally reminded him. “Do you love him back?”

Nico smiled, about to answer when another voice sounded from across the kitchen.

“Hey, Babe?” Will called, hurrying into the room. “I’ve gotta run, something happened with one of my scenes so we have to reshoot it, and--”

Nico wiped his hands off on his jeans and crossed the room to lead his boyfriend toward the door. “I’ll walk you out.”

They walked together to the door, and Will started to say his goodbye before Nico stopped him and pointed his attention to the few kids watching from around the corner. Nico opened the door and gestured for Will to walk outside, and Nico followed after him, despite not wearing a coat or shoes.

“I’m sorry I’ve gotta leave so soon,” Will said, wrapping his arms around Nico to keep him warm.

“It’s fine, I get it. Besides,” Nico said, rising up on his toes, “you’ll be back.” He pressed their lips together for a moment before pulling away. “I need to tell you something before you go, though. I never got to say what the highlight of my week was.”

“Oh, yeah,” Will said in realization. “And what might that be?”

“When you told me you love me,” Nico said. 

Will tipped his head down to press his forehead to Nico’s. “Yeah, that was definitely in my top three.”

“I love you, too.”

Will beamed, and kissed Nico again and again. “God, now I  _ really _ wish I didn’t have to leave.”

“It’s alright, I’ll see you again soon,” Nico said. “I love you.”

“I love you. I’ll call you tomorrow.” Will kissed the tip of Nico’s nose before he finally moved away. “Get back inside before you freeze.”

“Yes, sir, Doctor Papadopoulos.”

Will spun around so quick that he almost slipped down the stairs. Nico watched as his expression changed from shock to a pout, and then to anger. He pointed sternly at Nico as he said, “We’ll talk about that later.” Will marched down the stairs as Nico laughed and went back inside the house.

 

* * *

 

Nico had started watching the hospital drama that Will was on almost immediately after he found out the name. He didn’t start all the way from the beginning, just from Will’s first appearance - he didn’t have much time on his hands, and he really only cared about one character in particular. 

His character - Doctor Fred Papadopoulos, though Freddy’s superiors called him  _ Freckles _ \- was a surgical intern at whatever hospital the show took place in. He looked shorter on screen, though it was probably just because his fellow cast members were just as tall as he was. Nico had to admit, Will was an amazing actor, but he could do without the unnecessary hetero-romance the writers seemed to be forcing Freddy into.

Nico had nearly caught up with the show, and set his phone to alert him whenever an article or interview was released online that had something to do with Will, and Nico would make time in his day to watch or read about his boyfriend whenever he could. When he wasn’t texting or calling him instead, of course.

He’d just gotten home from Sally’s one evening when his phone buzzed in his pocket, notifying him of a new interview with Will about the hospital drama he was on. There were a few spoilers for the most recent episode, but Nico wasn’t there for the show’s plot, so he didn’t mind. 

The interviewer - like they usually did with actors on such dramatic shows - asked something about whether Will found any of his castmates attractive.

“Well, sure,” Will answered, as vague as he always was when these questions came around. “My castmates are all very attractive, and they’re also incredibly talented and great people to work with.”

“Yes, of course, but would you ever consider dating any of your castmates?” the interviewer pressed. “Your character, Freddy, and Piper McLean’s character--”

“Nope,” Will said, flat out. He’d never been so straightforward when it came to questions like that. “They’re great, sure, and Piper’s one of my best friends, but I’ve already got a boyfriend, and I love him, and nobody could replace him.”

Nico copied the link to the interview, sending it in a text to Will with the message:  _ I love you, too. _

 

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading!!
> 
> hit me up on thursday may 3 when i can guarantee that i'll be done with the burning maze and i'll be up for talking about it if anybody wants to scream with me!!
> 
> also my next list-turned-fic will be instafamous!nico which you can find on my headcanon masterlist on tumblr!! ((but i might post something different before then but we'll see about that))


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